nmah172.xml

nmah172.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-08-19

On that day I was doing my job as a School Crossing Guard on Staten Island. After my tour ended (at 8:50 a.m.) I went home to gather up things I would need for a PTA executive board meeting which was scheduled to take place at 9 a.m in our elementary school. I was Vice-President of the PTA. As I walked into the house, my husband said, "Look at this honey, a plane crashed into the WTC." I watched for a few minutes thinking it was a two seater gone off course then left to attend the meeting. I realized I had left my glasses at home and went back to get them (we live directly across the street from the school). As I picked up the glasses from the table and turned to go back out, the second plane hit. My first thoughts were, "Oh God, we are in trouble now!"
I went directly to school where I knew I would be needed to help with the crowd of parents who would be coming to pick up their children soon. There was muted chaos in school as one person after another found out about the attacks. Many of our teachers and staff had loved ones who worked in the WTC and downtown Manhattan so everyone was trying to phone and get information.
Along with the other PTA members, staff and teachers I began to bring children down to the lobby to be signed out and taken home by their parents. Our security guard was swamped as we required photo ID from everyone picking up a child. All of us who are active PTA members know almost everyone in our school and, as one of the crossing guards I know about one third of the kids, it is a relatively small school with a student population of around five hundered so we were able to help and things moved very quickly.
My son and his girlfriend came to school and told me they had missed their usual ferry into Manhattan and had witnessed the entire attack from St. George where the ferry docks. Had they made their usual connection, they would have been on their bicycles just going past the WTC at the time the second plane hit.
I remembered two friends who although they did not work in the WTC, were close by. We called the home of one and her husband said she was allright and headed home. We did not find out about the other friend until the next day but she too was allright and headed home immediately after being evacuated from her office, directly across from the WTC. She had been late getting into the city that morning and went directly to her office instead of going to a bank in the WTC as was her custom on Tuesdays. We were fortunate to get through with no problem.
Later in the morning two of us went outside to check the grounds of the school. Traffic was stopped and no one was going any where, Staten Island had been locked down by then. There were three people standing on the sidewalk who had just walked over the Bayonne bridge which is one block from our school. They worked in the WTC and told us they got out and just started to walk, not even knowing where they would end up, they all lived in South Jersey.
By two o'clock almost all the students had been picked up. I went home and began calling my cousins (five firefighters and one police officer) to find out about their safety. All but one was accounted for. He works in a fire house six blocks from our home,I went there and was told he was at the WTC but allright. All our family members were accounted for and safe as were most the friends we knew, we were thankful to God for keeping them safe.
Several of my friends from school lost loved ones in the attack, a firefighter brother, the cousin of one of our teachers, the nephew of our former PTA President, the neighbor of another of our parents. It seemed everyone either had a loved one lost or knew someone who did.
We spent the remainder of the day and night watching the television. We prayed for the families of the missing and lost and we prayed for all the people involved in the tragedy. We pray for them every day.

Since 9/11 I notice more planes as they take off and land at Newark Airport. I am more suspicious of strangers near our school, although prior to the attacks I was very vigilant, it seems to me I am more so now. I have always loved to fly but now I am just a bit tense all during the flights.

I think it is important for all of us to remember the hatered that brought on these attacks without being prejudiced to forigners. A fine line but one we can travel with common sense and faith. We have become an over civilized nation. We should educate the children, the future, to keep a strong defense system ready and be never underestimate the evil nature of our enemies again.
We should never forget the sacrifices made by countless people that day who gave their lives so others might live. The uniformed services and civillins who helped their fellow humans get to safety should be memorialized by setting September 11th aside as a day of prayer and rememberance by all of us who survive, similar to Vetrans day or Memorial day.

We always had a flag flying, my husband is a Marine Corps veteran of Vietnam. If it is possible to love our flag more, then yes, my feelings have deepened. The flag is a symbol of our nation and deserves all the respect and reverence we give it.